MR Microinsurance_2012_03_29.indd - International Labour ...

530 Infrastructure and environment for microinsurance
to be linked to clear performance measures to enable technology users to monitor
whether it does indeed add value.
– Technology needs to be deployed in a sequence that allows for learning and the
building of capabilities before implementation of the next level of technology.
– Better use of data analysis tools will require greater standardization in the formatting
of data and in data collection procedures.
– Sometimes high-technology solutions cannot stand up to the challenging environments
with temperature and rainfall extremes in which microinsurance customers
often live and work. Poor connectivity can also undermine investment in technology.
– Th e unreliability of technology providers is another challenge often faced by
microinsurance providers who need on-going service to support the technology.
– Technology investments need to be accompanied by complementary investments
in human capital to ensure that staff can derive full value from the newly
implemented technology.
To help microinsurance providers avoid the risks and take advantage of the
opportunities, in 2008 the Microinsurance Network’s Technology Working
Group reviewed the microinsurance technology landscape (see Box 24.1 for information
on the Working Group’s activities). Th e review identifi ed three main categories
of technology relevant for microinsurance: 1) customer interfacing mechanisms;
2) transaction processing including management information systems
(MIS); and 3) data analysis, as summarized in Table 24.1. Th e scope and nature of
these three categories of technology are considered in greater depth in the
remainder of this chapter.
Table 24.1 Main categories of technology in microinsurance
Client interface Transaction processing Data analysis
Enrolment and premium payment Loss verifi cation
– Mobile phone with a global position- position-
– Radio frequency
– Software as a service
– Database analysis
ing system (GPS)
identifi cation device
(SaaS)
– Weather stations data
– Short message service (SMS)
(RFID)
– Call centre
– Satellite imaging data
– Smart card
– Biometrics
– Management infor- infor-
– Point-of-sale (PoS) terminal
– Weather indices
mation system (MIS)
– Subscriber identity module (SIM)
– Spatial mapping
– Voice over Internet
– Mobile payments platform
technology
protocol (VOIP)
– Wireless access service provider
(WASP)
– General packet radio services (GPRS)
– Remote diagnosis
– Data standardization
Source: Adapted from Gerelle and Berende, 2008.